kaiju

Thanks, and regarding the dust, it really does. And I'm glad you feel the pictures do it justice. Thank you. I figured that, with the names, the wings would work as decent greebling to break up the huge expanses of black bricks.

So I just re-licensed the 3A Mirthless Jest, which was given to me by Kwatchi so I believe I only have to pay the extra cost for it being 4+ vessel. (Amusingly, Kwatchi obtained the ship from another player, who captured it from me a couple of MRCAs ago).

I really like your microscale model of the settlement.

Preamble: After finishing this build several months ago I had been growing increasingly frustrated with my inability to take 'ideal' shots with my limited photography set up. Coupled with reduced opportunity to take pictures during the festive period the build had grown quite dusty, which is noticeable in the photos presented. For this I apologise, but I have decided I would rather have pictures to post than continuously waiting until I have 'perfect' shots. And with that said, I now present the finished ship. Previous: The Bleak Angel: Prelude Heroes, Villains and Legends A Journey Through the Discoveries of the Age of Exploration: the Ships; the Captains; the People Volume Four: The Self-Styled and So-Called Sea Rats By Quentin Connors Chapter Thirteen: The Bleak Angel, continued... The next evening, all other affairs in order, I went to board the Bleak Angel. Upon sight of her I immediately knew how so many tales had sprung up around the ship. Tales of an immortal captain, an unsinkable ship dredged up by a dark force, of witches and heretics and all manner of things my Corrington upbringing left little room in the world for. My first introduction was to the bleak angel itself, the ship's figurehead and the two skulls that flanked it. I was informed the skulls were named Larry and Barry. Several crewmen offered explanations for the names and their presence. My favourite was that the skulls were the remains of two headstrong crew members who had once pledged to man the ship until it no longer sailed; following their untimely deaths in an ill-thought up venture Captain Dracken took them at their word and installed them as the ship's “spiritual advisers”. Mister Jakes greeted me as I boarded. I was swiftly introduced to Miss Abigail Kite, the ship's second officer and former gunnery master. Miss Kite now largely served as officer for the ship's marines. As with most Sea Rat vessels the marines were less a dedicated group of soldiers and simply the most violent and reliable actors in previous boarding actions. Perhaps they were best exemplified by Eleanor and Elizabeth, commonly known by the rest of the crew as “the Murder Twins” - though I should note only from a suitably safe distance. The twins had positioned themselves as Kite's left and right hands, when not hurting people. The last officer on the ship was Bartholomew Drake, the ship's quartermaster. A man surprisingly keen on bare knuckles pugilism, Drake often bore bruises from 'friendly' matches with other crew members. Somehow this did little to dull his mind, which remained consistently sharp despite the repeated head injuries he surely must have received on account of his hobby. “Old Man” O'malley was the Angel's cabin boy and errand runner. Whatever his given first name is, I never heard it used during my time on the vessel. After a few days of laborious sailing I was invited to meet with Captain Dracken himself in his cabin. Dracken revealed he had heard my tavern discussion with Mr. Jakes and was intrigued by my efforts to document the age of sail as it was happening. Dracken's cabin was, unsurprisingly, the largest, though it did also have to function as his private office and briefing room for his officers. My eyes were drawn to the numerous idols decorating the cabin. Here was quite a curious thing: that a man claiming to be an Oleonder officer, and therefore minor priest of Poseidon, on a ship named after the Angelic Heresy and living in a room filled with heathen idols. The antique but well maintained admiral's uniform Dracken had lying on his bed certainly failed to clarify anything. One of the more popular tales regarding Leon Dracken is the story of him being granted an extended lifespan by a witch for saving her life. I bring this up again for the unique interactions between Dracken and one of his crew make sense only with this context. Two young women serve on his ship. Liliana Vespwood, missing daughter of Lord Vespwood, is the ship's helmswoman and navigator. Her frequent – almost constant – companion went by the name Althea Holtzstein-Dracken and claimed to be the Captain's grand-daughter. If this was a charade it was one the two Drackens managed to perform and maintain for several years. If it was not, truly, the world is much stranger than I and my countrymen would ever admit. In any case I seldom witnessed the two young women far apart and heard some talk their relationship was closer than friendly. During the early stage of the voyage I caught frequent glimpses of the ship's most reclusive crew member, the one known as the witch: Iosefka. Several other tavern patrons in Bastion claimed the ship employed a witch to control the weather and turn it to the ships favour and I began to wonder which came first, the stories or Iosefka's presence on the ship. My only significant interaction with Iosefka came when accompanying another crew member, Boris, to seek medical assistance from her. She made her home in a large cabin at the back of the gun deck. Iosefka's appearance was striking; taller than most of the crew, skin nearly corpse-like white and almost unnaturally slender build. She bore all the characteristics associated with the victims of the Blackwater Massacre. Discovering this 'witch' served as a the crew's surgeon was a surprise and her book collection included several volumes I recognised as medical textbooks banned in several nations on account of how subjects for study were obtained. Like many pirate vessels, the Angel's gun deck was a cramped and noisy place, overloaded with larger cannons and leaving little space for cargo. I was told the ship traded, when the Captain was so inclined, in smaller high value items and so needed little space for trade goods. And as on most ships, the Sea Rats were joined by actual rats. That the crew kept a number of animals for the purpose of hunting those rats was unsurprising. Little did I realise at the time that I had joined the ship as the captain pursued the so called "Heretic's Hoard", a long rumoured treasure trove located on an unknown island. As fate would have it, my first journey on the Bleak Angel would by far be the least unusual. End of Chapter. Some more behind the spoiler button.

Ironically, all the current artifact hunting seems to be being done by Sea Rats.

Not a terrible idea. We really need two threads, a new player/intro thread and a separate general discussion thread.

While I would really like to see the forest and water monsters be released in physical form it doesn't seem likely at this point. From the rumoured/leaked names this year's summer wave will continue the rock/storm enemies.

That is some quite impressive rockwork. And I was not expecting to see the Medusa minifigure. Good work overall,

50 DB for OL's Best.

That's a rather impressive representation of the Mirthless Jest given it's highly unorthodox colour scheme.

And on that note, my current ship status: Active Wight Spider - 1WR - Captained by Laurence Gascoigne - MOCed by Myself Dark Narwhal - 2A - Purchased from MKjoshA - MOCed by gedren_y King Archibdald - 2A - Purchased from MKjoshA - MOCed by Captain Braunsfeld Mirthless Jest - 3A - gifted by Kwatchi - MOCed by Myself Lenore - 4T2 - Captained by Roderick Graves - MOCed by Myself Inactive/Unlicensed Lost Soul's Tide - Unlicensed - MOCed by Myself - Given to Kwatchi Bleak Angel - Unlicensed - MOCed by Myself Lost/ Bloody White Crow - Lost At Sea - MOCed by Myself Night's Gold - Lost At Sea - MOCed by Myself Maiden of the Deep - Captured by Eslandola - MOCed by Myself

Much better (until the next time), Thanks

More battle packs. A nice, easy way to acquire the villainous footsoldiers.

And of course... Just licensed two ships that were purchased from another player, and the full (for a Sea Rat) license costs were taken out of my account.

Question Time (Yet Again): If one player were to gift another player with a captured ship, how would that work in regards to forms being filled in? If this were to take the receiving player to four or more licensed vessels, would they still need to pay the extra fee for that many ships?

Thank you very much. As you might imagine, it took a few goes to get the skeleton to stay hung up with just the chain holding it in place.

Thank you. Thanks. It's Wild West Wyldstyle's skirt piece from the Lego Movie CMFs.

Thank you. I'm glad people are enjoying this.

My best suggestion would be Tauriel.

I am mildly terrified of what happens when that ship unleashes a broadside, both to the enemy and itself. And I do like that cannon design.

Real world sky burial is much less sinister; it is or was typically common in areas without much soil for ground burial, such as the Himalayas. I first encountered the idea in the video game Bloodborne. Which working on this storyline I decided it would make a degree of sense as a form of punishment within Oleon to keep the faithful to scared to waver in their faith. And thank you, I try my best with in many ways quite limited resources.

Thanks, especially for the kind words about the photography. Also, you have reminded me that I need to add the links to previous parts of this story (it has been a while). Thank you.

Previously Escaping from an Oleon Jail, Captain Dracken escaped from LeBellan and returned to his ship. Revealing he had acquired a map to the lost vault of Oedon Black and the fabled Heretic's Hoard, Dracken set course on his ship, the Bleak Angel. The Heretic's Hoard, part I: The Fate of Oedon Black After some delays the Bleak Angel had finally found her target: a small island unmarked on maps and seemingly abandoned. From the wheel of the Angel Captain Dracken surveyed the isle. The only visible landing point was a small beach flanked by large outcroppings of rocks. “Ready the boats,” he said, “and make some room below decks.” Not trusting the quiet island Dracken assembled a heavily armed party. Second Mate Kite would oversee the crew, Bartholomew Drake would appraise the loot. They landed on the beach with no problem and were barely finished unloading weapons when everyone heard Drake ask the question. “What is that?” Suspended on a large pole above the beach was a skeleton, or most of it at any rate, wrapped in tattered cloth and chained in place. “Sky burial,” Dracken said, “pity the soul.” “Sounds like crazy Oleon stuff.” Kite said. “Not wrong,” Dracken said, “though not exclusive to Oleon. The faith claims that souls of the dead pass through to Hades' realm beneath the earth and so inter their bodies in the ground to help the soul cross over.” “And this sorry son-of-a-” Drake began. “Was Oedon Black himself,” Dracken said, “judging from that placard. Sky burial was reserved for heretics and other treasonous souls. The body hoisted aloft and left to be picked clean by carrion and insects. The idea is that burial in this fashion delays, or even prevents, a soul crossing over.” “That,” Kite said, “is messed up.” To Be Continued...

Thank you.

6th February to 26th Feb, and £50.